Toyota Prius

Quiet, efficient but needs beeper

Japanese car makers have long been accused of being imitators rather than innovators, but some such as Toyota and Honda have been prepared to go out on a limb with fuel-saving hybrid technology.

Both have put their hybrid vehicles into mass production and, in the case of Toyota, it has been a success in Australia with demand outpacing supply.

The Prius tops the overall classification of the Australian Government's Green Guide, which takes into account fuel consumption, exhaust emissions and greenhouse gas levels, by scoring a maximum five-star rating.

The Prius has an electric motor and a 1.5-litre petrol engine that develops 57 kilowatts of power. It will run on either the electric motor (when travelling in slow-moving traffic around town), the petrol engine or a combination of both when extra acceleration is demanded.

Three Prius owners have their say

Customer's name: Tim Webster.Age: 53.Occupation: Broadcaster.Car: i-Tech Prius.When did you buy it? Almost two years ago.Why did you buy it? Its environmental friendliness and the fuel-saving idea.Which other cars did you consider? None.What did you drive before this car? A Lexus GS300, a LandCruiser and we still have a Kluger.What do you like most about it? The smoothness. It is quiet and has about the same performance as a four-cylinder Camry.What do you dislike about it? The space-saver spare tyre. I got a flat recently and was lucky I was near a tyre dealership. You can only travel at 80kmh on the space-saver.How could they make it better? It will have to be cheaper. It's over $40,000.

Customer's name: Jacqueline McCann.Age: 37.Occupation: People and performance manager.Car: i-Tech Prius.When did you buy it? Two months ago.Why did you buy it? It looks cool and was in my price range. I also wanted to do my bit for the environment.Which other cars did you consider? A convertible, but with Sydney's air quality it wasn't such a good idea.What did you drive before this car? A Toyota Corolla.What do you like most about it? Easy to drive, very comfortable and quiet. It's also roomy, but it's small enough to be easy to park.What do you dislike? The beeping noise on the inside when you reverse.How could they make it better? A beeper on the outside to alert people it's about to reverse.

Customer's name: Robin Kydd.Age: 53.Occupation: Managing director.Car: i-Tech Prius, and the company has three other standard versions.When did you buy it? The first ones two years ago and this one 18 months ago.Why did you buy it? It made good financial sense. We calculated that if our reps do 20,000 to 25,000 kilometres a year, we would get our money back in three years when petrol was 90 cents a litre.Which other cars did you consider? Commodore and Falcon.What did you drive before? Holden Commodores.What do you like most about it? Apart from the fuel consumption, they are very calming to drive.What do you dislike? They're noiseless in car parks; no-one knows you are there.How could they make the car better? They need a low-speed external beeper to warn people.